Mandinka people

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The Mandinka or Malinke are a West African ethnic group indigenous to southern Mali, The Gambia, southern Senegal and eastern Guinea. Numbering about 15 million, they are the largest subgroup of the Mandé peoples and one of the largest ethnolinguistic groups in Africa. They speak the Manding languages in the Mande language family, which are a lingua franca in much of West Africa. They are predominantly subsistence farmers and live in rural villages. Their largest urban center is Bamako, the capital of Mali. In Mali, the Mandinka people are especially concentrated in the regions of Kita (49%), Kayes (25%), and Koulikoro (14%). The Mandinka are the descendants of the Mali Empire, which rose to power in the 13th century under the rule of king Sundiata Keita, who founded an empire that would go on to span a large part of West Africa. They migrated west from the Niger River in search of better agricultural lands and more opportunities for conquest. Nowadays, the Mandinka inhabit the West Sudanian...

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